She’s trying to forget the pleasure in her ex’s arms. He’s doing his damnedest to remind her.

Fledgling entrepreneur Samantha Riverà is in charge of her own life for the first time and determined to keep it that way. She’s attempting to banish her call-all-the-shots ex-husband from her dreams, but it’s kind of tough forgetting the Zorro look-alike who’s willing to do anything for her, except give her the only two things she wants, another baby and his love. When their 14-year-old daughter Dani, who’s maintaining a shaky remission from leukemia, rebels, Sam foolishly seeks advice from her Don Juan ex, who, incidentally, could charm the knickers off a nun.

When Nicolàs Riverà returns to Redemption, PA, to help control his defiant daughter, he discovers he not only has serious competition for Sam’s affection, but Dani has a crush on a boy who is the last kid Nick wants her interested in. The boy is a horn-dog rebel who reminds Nick way to much of his teen-aged self.

Sam never understood that, to a second-generation Latino man, familial responsibility is número uno. She also has no concept of how terrified this reformed bad-boy and businessman is of losing her to another high-risk pregnancy. The death of their premature son devastated Nick, and his refusal to sire another child incited The Great Bedroom War that ultimately destroyed his marriage. Now, he’ll stop at nothing to get his family back, even if it means blackmailing his way back into his ex-wife’s home to become a greater presence in his sick child’s life, and with any luck, Samantha’s bed and heart.

Ever wondered what might happen if your therapist was replaced by a pirate? Or how disquieting it would be to receive postcards from your future self? If William Shatner was elected President of the United States, what would his inaugural address sound like? Mark A. Rayner tackles these and stranger questions in his collection of short stories, essays and flash fiction that thrum with the absurd and hum with alienation, all to a humorous beat. Jesus contends with dinosaurs. Marcel Duchamp describes what happens to a Dadaist who has a monkey’s tail grafted to his butt. Whether he is explaining how Anne of Green Gables destroyed the world, or outlining Thor’s new PR strategy, Rayner entertains with wit, humor and an imagination that is one step short of certifiable.

Stu Edrich was a typical teenage boy in search of an identity. He quickly learns that life does not always turn out the way you expect. He follows his passion to create music and live life in a positive and ethical way. However when life takes a wrong turn he loses his faith and is his own identity. This is a story about relationships and finding ways to establish peace in your heart and soul.

ICE AGE is a collection of eight short stories of the strange and the chilling by award-winning author Iain Rowan.

Stories of the dead and the living, and cities at war where it is hard to tell one from the other. Lonely roads and forest paths and wrong turnings. Very wrong turnings. The fiery martyrdom of The New Way, distant voices that call from the sea, and the ice creeping in, ever in.

When sexy, seventh grade teacher Paula Noonan is found murdered in a nearby park, Detective Sergeant Nicholas Drumm of the York Police Services is called in. Drumm’s previous experience as an elementary teacher comes in handy when the investigation leads him to Paula’s school, and a host of suspects, including the school’s creepy janitor, an abusive spouse, the principal, a moody and leering fifth grade teacher and the angry and aggressive father of one of her students.

It’s 1921. Cleo Snow travels with her cousin, Neill Connolly, to Sago Island, Ga. to lessen the sadness of her fiance’s death in The Great War (later called World War I). He’d been missing, presumed killed in France, and his body recently returned home.

America’s victory celebration is in full swing. The Flapper Era has begun. Cleo is poised between her Victorian raising and post-war liberal ideas. Women got the vote in 1920. They work, Cleo’s a nurse. Hemlines are rising. Jargon is spicier. Songs are racier. The fox trot is the cat’s meow. Everyone smokes coffin nails. The great experiment, Prohibition, has ushered in an era of fascinating gangsters and illegal speakeasies. Drinking and dancing go together like bathtub gin and painted dolls.

Everyone on Sago, it seems, has something to hide, even villagers who distill homemade hooch, and it all pivots around Josie and Graham. With her spirit firmed by deceit, Cleo vows to uncover the truth and keep her own secret..

This is a true story; a story of survival. It tells of how a boy and his family lived a life of hellish abuse, fought back, and learned to live with the memories. It is also an adventure tale, following the boy through the military buildup to the Viet Nam War, Pacific Island love affairs, and his personal battles in the Montana mountains.

As a boy, Jeff was raised in the mountains of Montana where he idolized his father, a former professional boxer. But in the early 1950s, his idol became an alcoholic and an abuser, repeatedly beating Jeff, his mother, and his younger siblings. In desperation, Jeff resorted to digging hidden bunkers where the family could hide when they were attacked. Life became a daily struggle, both physically and financially.

He left school and worked wherever he could find a job, using the money to help feed his family. He labored in lumber mills, railroads, and ranches until he joined the military at age seventeen.

This story follows the boy from the hell of his childhood through Pacific Island love affairs, killer typhoons, and Hong Kong bar battles as he fights his way to acceptance in the rough and tumble world of a destroyer sailor. In his first Navy assignment, he finds that his poor education has resulted in a job he despises; working as a permanent head cleaner on an old destroyer. But through perseverance, hard work, and an iron will, he becomes a leader, supervising teams working on experimental shipboard missile guidance systems.

But you can’t run from yourself. Jeff’s family problems haunt him, frequently bringing him back to Montana; to increasingly violent confrontations with his father. Tensions build until the inevitable happens and Jeff is drawn into a final, epic, battle with the abuser.

A sobering, visceral, and shockingly real portrait of domestic violence, the boy’s relentless drive for survival is nothing short of extraordinary. An uplifting journey to redemption and self-acceptance, The Long Escape sends an unforgettable message to the abused that there really can be hope and love in their future. It also brilliantly captures the sometimes hollow feeling of victory and the scars of abuse that are carried for a lifetime.

This is a true story. Some names have been changed to accomodate participants, but the story is absolutely true. The author sincerely hopes that, by publishing this memoir, he can provide a bit of a roadmap for others struggling to escape a life of abuse.

Popcorn has probably been around longer than any other snack food on the planet. It has a rich history, dating back to before civilization and taking part in a multitude of events we celebrate every year. It’s the most popular snack food around the world, and the second most popular snack in America (falling just behind potato chips). Popcorn can be found all over the country, at movie theaters, carnivals, and most people’s kitchens or pantries.

I’ve gathered 30 of the finest popcorn recipes from around the world for your snacking pleasure, and have tried to keep them free from artificial sweeteners, preservatives or other nasty additives wherever possible. I’ve specified 9 cups of popped corn for most recipes, as that gives 3 generous cups per serving, you can have as many or as few servings as you fancy, but keep an eye on the calories! For your convenience, I’ve also included nutritional data from the USDA for each recipe (that’s the U.S. Department of Agriculture and not the United Square Dancers of America!)